Recent statements by our President and other elected leaders regarding potential military strikes in Syria have been disappointing to pacifists and just war adherents alike. Although most agree that the war crime of using chemical weapons, especially against innocent people, is action that should be condemned by the international community, we must ask: what should be our response to such an ugly act of violence?

The Executive Committee of the Disciples Peace Fellowship (DPF) has unanimously agreed that the proper response by the United States is not the use of military force, however “targeted” and “limited” strikes may be. Our organization has traditionally been known to follow a pacifist philosophy which would find all war and violence wrong; however, our membership also consists of just war adherents who believe that certain wars and specific acts of force may be necessary. Despite our diversity, we all agree that US military action in Syria is not the right path. The General Minister and President of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Sharon Watkins, signed an inter-faith letter sent to Congress last week petitioning our representatives to vote against such strikes.

We commend the recent conversations between the US and Russia in Geneva that concluded in agreement to rid Syria of its chemical weapons. We applaud the next steps that include bringing together the United Nations to pass a resolution that would eliminate chemical weapons in Syria. We are pleased to see the US government decide that diplomacy is a better option than military force. Most of all, we are hopeful that UN investigators can assist in eliminating chemical weapons in Syria in order to stop more innocent people from dying and further the cause of peace. We believe that these actions, based in unity among nations as well as the lack of violent response, will lead to positive results.

In reflecting on how we should respond in the face of such brutality anywhere, we remember the words of Martin Luther King, Jr.: “Violence ends by defeating itself. It creates bitterness in the survivors and brutality in the destroyers.”

We continue to work and pray for a peaceful resolution to the violence currently engulfing Syria.

*DPF is the oldest existing Peace Fellowship of any denomination in the United States. We are dedicated to the elimination of war, Biblical principles of peace and justice, and keeping these passions alive within the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).